He looked relieved. “Do you want to hear my plan or do you want to come up with your own?”
“Yours is fine.” I swirled a piece of pancake on my plate, no longer hungry. Being with Joe hurt more than I thought possible, every word out of his mouth a reminder of his betrayal.
“You don’t even want to hear it first?” He sounded incredulous. And hurt.
I grimaced and shook my head, putting my fork down. “I’m not hungry. I’m going to take Muffy out and take a shower.”
“I already took Muffy out.”
“What? She was sleepin’ with me when I woke up.”
“When I got up she must have heard me. We went out, she did her business and then she went back to your bed.”
So much for my guard dog.
“Then I’ll just take a shower and get dressed. I’ll clean up the kitchen when I get done,” I said and left Joe in the kitchen.
I took a long time in the shower and when I came out there was no sign of Joe. He must have gone home to get dressed, but the kitchen was clean and a laptop sat in the chair in the living room.
For the first time that morning, my spirits lifted.
I sank to my knees on the floor, turning the open computer to face me. My stomach fluttered, tossing around the bacon and pancakes I’d choked down. The black screen lit up to a bright blue when I pushed the illuminated power button.
I’d never used a laptop, just my dinosaur computer at work and the one at the library. I moved my index finger on the touchpad, getting used to the feel of it. The screen asked for Joe’s password. I racked my brain, trying to figure out what password Joe would use, which felt like looking for a leprechaun on Thanksgiving Day. In a spirit of hatefulness, I typed in Hilary, stabbing the keys with my fingers. Not it.
I was so intent on my task I didn't notice Joe until he asked dryly, “Do you need help?”
I screamed.
He leaned against the doorway, his face expressionless. “Did I surprise you?”
I jumped to my feet and instantly regretted it. Talk about looking guilty.
“I wanted to check the weather forecast. For today.”
Joe walked over, picked up the television remote and pushed a button. “You have cable now. You can find out on the Weather Channel.” He flipped the stations until a weather map appeared on the screen. “Why were you using my computer? Where’s yours?”
“I don’t have one.”
His eyes widened and the hard look turned to confusion. “You don’t have a computer?”
“No, I mean, yeah. Momma said they were the gateway to hell. She took the brand name Gateway a little too seriously.”
“So where do you check email, write Word documents, use the Internet?”
“I go to the library, every Saturday. I spend the afternoon there to get away.”
“And that’s the only computer you have?”
“Other than the one at work.”
He got a strange look which reminded me of Muffy’s face the night I feed her eggs. “I’ve got to use the restroom. I’ll be back in a minute.” He practically sprinted down the hall.
Guess I pegged that one right.
When he returned, he was more serious than he was at breakfast. “Okay, let’s go.” He sounded like I was marching him to his execution rather than the other way around.
“Nobody’s forcing you into this, Joe McAllister.”
“I said we were gonna have a fun day and we’re gonna do it,” he said, his voice riddled with irritation. If I hadn’t been so aggravated at him I would have laughed.
“We still have to get my car,” I said, while he locked my side door.
“Yeah, we will. Later.” He handed me my keys but refused to look at me.
We got in Joe’s car and took off down the street. “Where are we goin’?”
“It's a surprise,” he said, his voice gruff and no-nonsense. He reminded me of the night he left me to go to work. Fear percolated in my chest. What if Joe was taking me somewhere to kill me?
I started to hyperventilate.
Joe swerved the car to the side of the road. He turned toward me, resting his hand on my head rest. “Are you okay?” He sounded kinder, but it wasn’t enough to settle my fears.
I sucked in air like a fish on dry land, but my head just got fuzzier. Both of my hands fumbled for the door handle and I struggled to pull the lever. I got the door open and practically fell onto the side of the road.
“Rose!”
I scrambled to my feet and stood up, gasping for air, trying to figure out what to do. Joe had already gotten out of the car, walking in my direction.